Relationship Counseling

Couples/Marital Therapy

All couples will experience issues to deal with in any relationship, whether you have been together for a long or short period of time. Couples/Marital therapy might be indicated if you and your partner/spouse spend a lot of time fighting about your problems/issues and not resolving conflicts. Stock piling issues and building up resentments can hurt your relationship and leave you feeling like you are no longer on the same “team”. Some couples have lost their patience, ability to care, sense of humour and/or how to have fun together. This can impact the quality of your relationship in terms of feeling connected both emotionally and physically. Creating couples' time together can be very challenging given our busy lifestyles.

Some couples may be dealing with:

Communication issues

Inability to resolve conflicts

Anger and resentments

Betrayal, trust issues, dishonesty, an affair

Addictions

Parenting issues

Commitment issues

The above issues can be difficult to resolve on your own and often couples find themselves stuck and going in circles. In couples therapy you can learn how to communicate more effectively, openly, and honestly in a constructive manner. You can learn how to better negotiate issues vs. getting caught up in power struggles or the blame game. If you are dealing with betrayal issues, counseling can help you work at forgiveness, rebuild trust and move on in a constructive manner in order to help you heal. Dealing with built-up anger and resentments can greatly improve the emotional and physical intimacy in your relationship.

Improve and create a healthy relationship where you are enjoying life together.

Relationship Counseling

Counseling can help you look at and understand issues that might be currently going on in a relationship, or might be an issue from your past that is unresolved. This can involve:

Family relationships

Family of origin / childhood issues

Work relationships

Friendships

Being able to work through and understand relationship dynamics, family patterns, and gain some insight into your own role and others around you, can be very freeing and constructive.

We are sometimes trapped by our past and being able to work through these issues can be very freeing.

Separation

Deciding whether to separate or not, is a big decision, not to be taken lightly and can be a difficult and anxiety-provoking time in your life. Therapy can help you sort out which direction you want to go, take an inventory of your life and your relationship to see if you can resolve issues with your partner/spouse, or move forward, but apart.

Divorce and Rebuilding

"Happily ever after" can mean different things to different people. It may mean not being with the person you originally partnered with. Going through a divorce can be a painful, scary and confusing time for you, your partner/spouse, and children. It can leave you feeling rudderless, with your confidence shaken. Although a very difficult adjustment, the ending of a marriage/relationship can also be an opportunity to grow and change. Counseling can help you gain tools to deal with the divorce process, heal and work through your grief and emotions, work on rebuilding, continue to be an effective parent, and develop an effective parenting plan.